“Suddenly?” Claire seemed skeptical. “You’ve always been attracted to Levi. Right?”
“Well, sure. Levi is gorgeous. He’s sexy. And he smells so good—all the time. Even after he’s worked out. And—” Realizing how much her ramblings had revealed, Piper cleared her throat. “We date other people. Have sex with other people.”
“Now, Levi wants to have sex with you,” Claire said as though the concept made perfect sense. “You want him. He wants you. What’s the problem?”
“I could lose him.” The idea terrified Piper to her very core.
“Friends to lovers is an adjustment, but—”
Piper cut Claire off with a shake of her head.
“I think we might be good together.” She smiled at the understatement. “Correction. We’d be great.”
“Then I repeat,” Claire said with a puzzled frown. “What’s the problem?”
“Levi knows everything about me.” Piper closed her eyes and sighed “Almost everything. Early on, I lied to him about something. At the time, I thought what I did was for the best.”
“You don’t think Levi would forgive you?” Claire asked.
“He would.” Piper had no doubt. “But I had a good reason to lie and nothing’s changed. The crazy that Levi is about to face because he’s the Knights’ starting quarterback is nothing compared to the insanity he’d be forced to deal with if he and I became romantically involved.”
“I won’t ask for details. Though I’m dying to know,” Claire said.
“Sorry.”
“Maybe another time?” Claire asked. The hopeful look on her face made Piper laugh.
“Maybe.”
“Fair enough.” Claire nodded. “May I give you one piece of advice?”
Piper already knew what Claire wanted to say.
“If I tell Levi everything, I know what his reaction will be,” Piper said. “He won’t think there’s a problem. He’d be wrong. But convincing him would be a herculean task. The man’s middle name should be changed to stubborn.”
“I’ve had my say on the subject. You know Levi better than I do.” Claire handed Piper a red bag emblazoned on the side with T in silver calligraphy. Her company’s logo.
“What is all this?” Piper asked, peeking inside before removing a bottle from the bag.
“Some Claire Thornton magic elixir.” Claire nodded toward the item in Piper’s hand. “The first products I developed were to help athletes recover from injuries and sore muscles. They’re still some of my best sellers.”
Flipping up the lid, Piper took a sniff. She expected a strong, medicinal smell. Instead, the scent of lemon mixed with sage filled her senses.
“Mm.” Piper gave Claire a surprised smile. “Very nice.”
“After his workout with the team, I thought Levi would appreciate something to soothe his aches and pains.” Claire waggled her eyebrows. “Wouldn’t hurt if you applied the balm with some personal TLC.”
“Too intimate,” Piper said with an emphatic shake of her head. “Levi wants a more physical relationship. Until I decide if that’s a good idea, I don’t want to do anything that could be construed on his part as leading him on.”
“Unless I miss my guess, Levi will barely be able to lift his head when Mac and the rest of the Knights’ coaching staff are through with him. If he can get a rise out of anything else—and you know what I mean—he’s freaking Superman.”
“You’re right,” Piper said with a nod.
“On the other hand. What’s the saying?” Thoughtfully, Claire tapped her chin. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”
“Question. Are you trying to encourage me, or discourage me?” Piper asked.
“Whatever works.” Claire gathered her purse. “If you don’t want to play masseuse, I have a friend who’d be happy to stop by Levi’s house and massage away his discomfort.”
“Man or woman?” Piper demanded.
“Woman.” Claire smiled at the sour expression on Piper’s face. “From what I understand, she has magic fingers.”
Hell, no, Piper thought. She would personally drop off Claire’s wonder lotions. Levi could take care of the rest himself.
“Let’s have lunch one day soon,” Claire said. “I’d love an update on everything.”
“Thanks, Claire.”
“One last thing.” Claire paused at the door. “Logan gave me a bit of wisdom for you to pass on to Levi. Tell him not to listen to any of the local or national sports news programs. Whether the talking heads are on his side or completely against him, nothing good can come from tuning in. He has enough on his mind without letting strangers screw him.”
“I’ll pass along Logan’s advice,” Piper promised. “If Levi will listen, is another matter.
“Do your best,” Claire said with a sympathetic smile. “Because Levi is someone you care about, you’ll suffer when people trash talk about him. You’ll want to hit back—with your fists and your words. Believe me, I know. But don’t. Any kind of reaction just gives the uninformed idiots more power than they deserve.
Alone in her office, she mulled over Claire’s parting advice. Until now, Piper hadn’t considered anything besides what Levi had to deal with on the field. She wasn’t naïve. She knew how brutal social media bullies and loudmouths could be.
Because Piper had been fortunate enough to stay away from online fracases, she’d always been a casual, albeit appalled, observer. She had the feeling that her lack of experience on the subject was about to change.
Piper had always used numbers to do her talking. But if anyone came after Levi, they would feel her wrath. She had a motto. Hurt her friends, hurt her.
Despite Claire’s sage advice, Piper wasn’t sure she could stop herself from standing up for Levi—with her words, or even her fists.
Amused—though no less determined—by the idea of physically taking someone down, Piper picked up the bag of goodies Claire had left behind. Curious, she dabbed a bit of lotion onto the back of her hand. The texture was silky, the scent intoxicating.
Slowly, a feeling of warmth penetrated her skin. She could picture Levi’s reaction as she messaged the balm into his weary muscles.
Piper had seen Levi without a shirt on numerous occasions. He looked good. Exceptionally good. However, she’d always
